Atrum Strain
by Arachnautic
Summary: A zombie apocalypse threatens four families and a young girl searches an abandoned city on her quest to find her parents.
1. Intro

**Excerpt from article by Thomas Goering titled "The Evestone Cannibal," June 30**

"..Mrs. Jordan had left the body in the hospital, in her room. Police say that after eating a large section of the woman's abdomen, she walked down the hallway in the opposite direction of the main desk and descended the stairs through the emergency exit without being seen by any of the other nurses on duty.

She was first noticed by Herbert Lasel, who spotted her walking through the parking lot behind the hospital. "Her chin was covered in blood and she was walking like she was drunk," Herbert says. "She was scratching her arm and screaming and crying a lot. I called the police as quickly as I could…'"

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**Quote from Dr. Robert M Lange, E-Journal Entry 314, July 18**

"I received the new parasite this morning that Dr. Schrödinger mailed to me, and I am eager to examine its effects on our laboratory's test mice. Its origin is unknown, but we will be examining some of its effects shortly.

In a local hospital near Dr. Schrödinger, a woman came in with flu-like symptoms, and had later been diagnosed with toxoplasmosis. They had kept her for a few extra nights when she started refusing to eat or drink. Then all of the sudden, a week after she had been admitted, she killed and consumed a nurse during the night shift. She was found a half hour later in a nearby grocery store parking lot, slowly walking in circles and screaming. When the police arrived at two in the morning to try to take her into custody, she attacked a deputy and was shot and killed. The deputy's excuse was that pepper spay did not have any effect on her, and when they tried using their tazer, she kept getting back up. It was later confirmed that she was a schizophrenic, though her sudden violence and hostility were never explained.

A sample of an evolved form of toxoplasmosa gondii was sent from the autopsy to my colleague to be inspected. He believes that the parasite could be responsible for the way that she acted under the circumstances, but it is very unlikely. A parasite with that much control over the host's brain has never been seen before. "

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**Quote from Fox News' Gabrielle Mason, July 20**

"A wildly aggressive group of four individuals were arrested in downtown Evestone yesterday after assaulting twenty civilians using their teeth. One older woman bit into a young man's shoulder, and continued biting him until she was pulled away by a concerned onlooker. When she resisted arrest, police had no choice but to use force. The angry lady has still not yet been identified due to the scratches on her arms and face. Doctors believe the wounds to be self inflicted.

Investigators say that all four individuals showed many of the telltale signs of schizophrenia but were violent and hostile toward anyone that approached them. What is even more bizarre is that the individuals were found several blocks away from each other, and do not appear to recognize one another. All four of the individuals were sedated and taken into custody. They are currently being identified and will be receiving psychiatric treatment shortly."

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**Quote from Dr. Robert M Lange, E-Journal Entry 316, July 21**

"I began experimenting with the new parasite yesterday by infecting a group of both mice and rats in separate enclosures, and its effects on both types of rodents are already very apparent.

This morning, the control group had retreated to the far side of their enclosure, away from the manipulated group, whose enclosure is on a nearby shelf. They seemed to be very aware of the parasites' presence in the nearby animals. Upon observing the mice that carried the parasites, I was surprised to see that they were all dead. The rats however were all very much alive. Their movements were quick and sporadic and they seemed to have very little coordination.

Radical changes in host's behavior are unheard of for this form of parasite, and the speed at which it worked is incredible. I have never seen this kind of symptoms in lab rodents before in my life! I will be continuing regular observations of the infected rats for the next few days."

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**Quote from reporter Patricia Sandino, BBC foreign breaking news July 30th**

"An explosion of violence breaks out in northern united states as an unconfirmed disease spreads across the country. Thousands of the alleged "infected" have been filling up hospitals over the past few days, and the US government has declared the matter a possible state of emergency. Angry civilian mobs and riots have been reported in several major cities in northern United States. Canada and Mexico may be closing off their borders soon to prevent the infection form crossing.

The origin of the bacteria is unknown, but it is believed to be carried by rodents, and could possibly have entered several different American water supplies across the country. The true level of threat that the infection poses is currently unknown, but there is some speculation that this infection could pose a very large threat to the nation."

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**Quote from Dr. Robert M Lange, E-Journal Entry 320, July 27**

"This is incredible! Unlike the toxoplasmosa gondii parasite, this new version has not only chemically altered the mind of the rats by making it unafraid of the smell of cat urine; it has also permanently altered the workings of the rat's brain completely. The test subjects from July 20th have now swung into a completely different mood than before!

Their quick and sporadic temperament has changed over the past few days into a new slow docile lethargic mood. Truly zombie-like. Their black eyes have begun to dry up, and I am assuming by the way they respond to light that they are now completely blind.

That is not all. They also seem to have taken an interest in cannibalism. Over the last three nights, two rodents have been killed and eaten by the others. I assume that the sudden taste for red meat that they have developed is because this parasite can only complete its life cycle in the intestines of a cat, just like the toxoplasmosa gondii!

The fact that the Evestone cannibal lady also had this same parasite is truly frightening. And since the toxoplasmosa parasite is known to cause schizophrenia in a human fetus before birth, this could be the reason for the violent group of 'suddenly psycho' schizophrenic people on the news. Perhaps the virus truly was the cause of the Evestone Cannibal Lady's crime.

I have begun a letter to the state to hopefully try to warn them. If this parasite gets to a cat population in a big city where it can multiply, many people could be at risk of becoming infected. God help them."

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**Fox News Worldwide, August 15**

"The President of the United States along with the supreme court was evacuated on Monday to avoid infection, followed by the prime minister of Canada and the president of Mexico. The place to which they will be relocated is confidential, but it will be free from the Parasite Toxoplasmosa Atrum discovered by Dr. Patrick Schrödinger and Dr. Robert Lange. This affectionately named "zombie virus" truly wasn't a virus after all, but a parasite of the protozoan genus, and is extremely resistant to drugs.

It is estimated that today over 98% of the United States population has been infected and 48% and 52% of the populations of Canada and Mexico. Reports of cases are surfacing throughout South America.

"A normal parasite does not spread this easily," says Dr. Schrödinger. "I believe we are dealing with a large-scale biological weapon. This parasite did not conquer an entire nation on its own. I believe that it had help." Our news teams have observed the parasite on a large scale- -by helicopter, and the after effects are devastating. Millions of Infected men and women roam the streets of cities across the US. Large processions of these 'zombie' people have spread to every corner of the United States. There are few true survivors left in this truly gruesome apocalypse."

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**Quote from Dr. Schrödinger, E-Journal Entry 410, August 20**

"With the tools and the safety granted to myself and Dr. Lange by the US government, we have been able to work a lot more effectively along with many other scientists in studying the effects of Toxoplasmosa Atrum on humans. So far we have been able to observe three male subjects that were captured and sent to us. What we know so far is that severe trauma to the head is the most efficient way to dispatch one of them (should he try to bite you), but you could kill one the same way you kill an average healthy human male; it would just take longer.

The parasite's effects on the human body are very strange. While destroying a large amount of selected activity in the brain, the parasite also greatly strengthens the immune system, and thickens the walls of many of their major organs. Equally strange are the parasites effects on their metabolism. When someone becomes infected, their metabolism is greatly slowed. They can go for incredibly long amounts of time without eating or drinking.

Their movement is very slow for the most part but when we introduced cat urine into one of the test subject's enclosures (we keep them in separate enclosure incase they decide to eat each other), the subject was changed. He became extremely active and began to pound on the walls and scream. We believe that cat urine stimulates them because the parasite's goal is to settle in the intestines of a cat. When the subject does not sense the presence of a cat in the immediate area, the parasite slows the body down, slows the metabolism, and essentially goes into a dormant state waiting for a cat or other felid to come into the vicinity so that it may change hosts.

In their slow docile state, subjects seem to be nearly brain dead. They may suddenly remember something from before they became infected. For example, our second subject recited a poem over and over for two hours one night. This behavior was very puzzling to us.

Overall they seem to have only three main concerns: feeding, going to the bathroom, and sleeping for short periods of time. They usually sleep standing up for about two hours each day, at random points in the day.

We plan to further study the activity of all three subjects in addition to conducting test on laboratory rats. Hopefully we can discover a way to bring them back to being human and kill off the parasite someday."


	2. Ghost

A mysterious parasite has surfaced and started to spread in several different parts of the United States. It was developed by a shady terrorist organization in order to cleanse the earth of all humans. For the past few weeks it has spread from city to city, through lakes and rivers and with the help of rodents, cats, and water. Now it has found its way to the small town of lintel falls.

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**Chapter One**

Sixteen year old Evra Sway left her house at 4:59 PM on the fourteenth day of her parent's absence, to search for help. They had promised to return in twenty four hours, before they left to organize transport for the three of them to get out of the country. So she had waited there for two weeks, alone. Everyone in the entire state was trying to get away from the parasite. Refugees from all over the western side of the US had been attempting to travel over the Pacific Ocean, and away from the infected, but due to the high risk of it spreading, airports in countries all along the far eastern coast were being shut down.

It was a dramatic evening, the evening that her parents left. Her mother, Martha Sway, had cried and promised that they would be back in one day's time to get her. Her Father had hugged and kissed her. Though he did not show it, he was just as worried about his daughter as Martha was. They could not take her along, however, for fear that she would come to harm. They had decided that it would be better to go on their own, and come back for her once they had found a safe way to get the three of them out of the state.

After they left, anarchy began to build. Large numbers of infected began to slowly creep into their small suburban town through the woods from the neighboring city. The parasite had completely consumed them, and they were nothing more than stumbling bags of infected meat; relatively passive for the most part, but still always hungry. They slowly started appearing in the streets, schoolyards, parking lots, and on front lawns, until there were hundreds of them everywhere. They walked slowly, shuffling up and down driveways and roads in large spread out waves. They lumbered through the city aimlessly, driving frightened people out of their homes.

Many of the citizens of Lintel Falls where Evra lived were already infected, when they left for the airport to evacuate, they just didn't know it. Few had known that the city's water supply had been tainted before it was too late. Luckily, Evra's family's obsession with bottled water had saved her just long enough to be warned by the newscaster, and she kept herself away from the parasite by only taking drinking uncontaminated water. She was forced to bathe using a cloth, and a small amount of heated up drinking water.

Over the past few days Evra had seen many infected citizens change into the lazy sluggish ghouls. After the fifth day of surviving alone in her house, the infected began to reduce in number slowly until there were only a few of them to be seen every hour. Though she was very frightened, Evra had become accustomed to seeing these 'zombie' people outside all day. She had figured that they majority of them had migrated to the next town seeking food. She had seen them eat wildlife, garbage, _Humans_. It was amazing what you could see in just an hour of staring out the window.

When she was convinced that it was safe enough, it was time to pack, but where would she go? Most everyone had left town; abandoned it, in its infested state. She decided that she would be traveling toward the airport by foot to search of her parents. She knew the violence that occurred at the airport though. It was over-crowded; there were fights, shootings, and even bombings. Everyone wanted to leave, but there were simply not enough planes, or food, or fuel. Plus there wasn't really anywhere to go. People were contracting the parasite _everywhere_. Countries outside the US were shutting down airports and borders. Where did they think they would get? Soon the parasite would reach the airport. What would they do then?

All this did not matter to her. Her mom and dad were there, and that is where she was going. Maybe they were waiting for her there, she thought. Perhaps they were still organizing a flight to take the three of them to someplace safe.

Unfortunately, she had no car. Moreover, her parents had not yet taught her how to drive, though they were planning to do so soon. Of course, when the huge 'Toxoplasmosa Atrum' pandemic surfaced, things as trivial as driving lessons were at the back of their minds. This was very understandable since the parasite had come from nowhere so fast and taken control of almost the entire US population.

On the news they had estimated that at the rate that it was going, almost everyone in North and South America would be infected by next month. The parasite may have already traveled over seas. Perhaps a group of terrorist were breeding it and introducing it to large bodies of water in order to infect as many people as possible. That was a scary thought. What if the entire human race was doomed to become infected?

Evra shivered. This was her first time stepping outside in a week. She wore her blue and gray converse with her favorite blue jeans (if she was going to be eaten alive or become a ghoul, she wanted to be wearing what she liked), and white t-shirt under a gray hooded sweatshirt. She wore her dad's waterproof digital watch that she had found in his room. On her back she carried two spare changes of clothing, her last three remaining bottles of clean water, a book, an MP3 player, and a few other small possessions in a large white and blue backpack.

Even though she had no makeup, she looked quite beautiful (for not being able to have a real shower in almost two weeks). Her blonde hair came down just past her shoulders in length, and was darker near the roots. It had grown a little since she had last dyed it.

Using both hands, she pulled her hair up into a pony tail and began to walk down the sidewalk.

The streets were empty. There were very few cars to be seen anywhere. The only sounds were the wind gently blowing past her, carrying a few dry leaves of autumn along the street and down toward the intersection. Her neighborhood's streets were narrow with houses on either side and a sidewalk on one side of the street. The fall had brought many shades of red and yellow and orange into her world. _A very colorful time for a nationwide parasite attack_, she thought. It was not exactly the time of year you would expect to have to deal with large scale biological terrorism. It was almost comical. The season that "The Dead walk the Earth!" turned out to be one of the most beautiful.

She tried knocking next door to see if anyone was home. Unsure of what to do, she peered in the window. As she had thought, nobody was home. The door was locked, and the car was gone from the driveway. She tried knocking at each house and testing each door to see if she could sneak into someone's home and find something to eat. Few houses were unlocked and those that were seemed to have already been raided of all of their food. Each house that she checked was empty; _abandoned_.

She had seen many people outdoors… but traveling where there could be a lurking ghoul anywhere still made her uneasy. Many refugees had passed by her house on their way through town and toward the coast, but all of them carried rifles. Being unarmed made her feel vulnerable and defenseless. What was even worse is that she was alone. There was nobody to talk to or to keep her company.

She thought about all her friends. Lots of people in her neighborhood fled to the airport, but those who had stayed were all infected from what she could tell. Many of her closest friends had called her when they began to feel sick from the parasite, to say goodbye. The past two weeks had been full of mourning, as each of her friends had disappeared one by one as if they just ceased to exist. But they were there; her friends still walked the earth (as ghouls). The most frustrating part of it all was being unable to do anything. Useless; Helpless; but what could she do? What could anyone do?

Her head was full of terrible thoughts. What if her parents had become infected at the airport? What if none of her friends had made it out of the country? What if the parasite had made its way around the entire earth, and everyone was infected? What if she was the only one left on earth? She began to cry, as she had done so many times before in the past two weeks. Her tears dotted the ground with little wet spots as she walked.

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Evra had walked east for a whole half hour before her emotions began to subside. Feelings for her parents and friends all came out in tears. Every time she would try to push them out of her head, they would come right back along with all of the hurt. She remembered when she was little, before they moved to Lintel Falls. She remembered her father taking her to the hospital when she had broken her arm. She remembered when her mother used to read stories to her before bed. She missed her parents and now she was walking toward the airport by herself, in the middle of a dangerous parasite infestation. She felt cold and alone. It made it worse that there was nobody there to talk to.

The sun was starting it's decent toward the horizon, where it would disappear in a few hours. Evra was tired and hungry. She began to think about different places she could stock up on food. Walking all the way to the airport was a long journey after all. A longer distance that she had ever walked before anyway, but she knew how to get there. The area was familiar to her, and she decided to go to the local gas station as it was just an hour's walk away. There would hopefully be food there and maybe a place to stay for the night. She didn't think the owner would mind. After all, he had probably fled the city like everyone else. Being outside and vulnerable to the zombified citizens was frightening, and she could already picture herself holed up in the Chevron station, safe behind the front desk. There would be plenty of food and water.

For the amount of time that she had been walking, Evra was surprised that she hadn't seen any infected. The road ahead of her seemed just as quiet as the trail behind her. She decided to stop at the park and rest for a few minutes before continuing. Her bag had begun to feel heavy, and her shoulder needed a break. She dropped her bag in the grass and sat, admiring its soft green texture. The wind blew through the field, tousling the grass and making it roll in big long waves as if saying "hello" to her. She relaxed a little, decently contented with being outdoors, even under the circumstances.

All of the sudden, a deep low moaning noise rose up from behind her. She whirled around in time to see four ghouls limping towards her. Their eyes were dried up and blank, their pale grey faces expressionless. Their clothes were dirty and worn down, and only one of them was wearing a shoe... _one shoe_. The closest one, barely twenty feet away, was moving faster than the rest. Drool hung from his open mouth as he staggered toward her, grunting.


	3. Awestruck

A young girl is forced to leave the safety of her home for food. She has decided to search for her parents at the airport which is many miles away. She must make the journey on foot. Meanwhile we go a week into the past to another town several miles away from hers, near Elmwood and Evestone.

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**Chapter Two**

_7 days earlier…_

It was a rectangle. A quiet, organized, walled-off rectangle. Fences nine feet high were built to keep out the infected. They were the only ones left there, as far as they knew.

The parents had been right; combining the four of their properties had been a wise decision. Ghouls were unable to get through the reinforced walls that they had made, and combining their back yard spaces into one big "zombie-proof" fortress had been a success. Three fathers and five teenagers had all worked together to utilize any lumber and fencing that they could find to wall off their four homes from the walking plague.

By now, after two weeks of frantic work, a systematic routine had started to manifest itself. The three girls and four mothers of their new little 45 by 50 meter community were in charge of preparing food and water. Hunting and scavenging had turned out to be one of the most important chores of the day. The three Benson boys brought back as much as they could each time they went out. It took the most time since there were a total of 14 mouths to feed.

Mr. Benson and Mr. Crumb were in charge of protection and carpentry. The external windows and doors of each house had to be reinforced for safety, and changes were constantly being made to make surviving the parasite easier for everyone. A large fire pit was dug in the center where all four properties met, for cooking and baking as well as warmth. With no electricity, they had to rely on a wood bonfire to keep life going.

It was not as big of a change as it could have been, however. Clothes were still washed every day, and everyone bathed regularly. The Crumb family's pool was filled with clean water. To be safe, the water for drinking was boiled first. The roof of each house had been modified to feed their chlorinated water supply every time it rained, via four Aqueducts connected to each of the rain-gutters. When it rained, the pool was filled till it overflowed, and the gutters had to be dammed off to keep from flooding the grass. Water was used sparingly to keep everyone clean and hydrated, just enough to keep life moving. If the rain did not come for a long time, water would have to be rationed off more carefully to prevent them from running out.

Adric, the newest member of Camp and the oldest of the four young men at eighteen years old, was elected to watch for ghouls and warn everyone if he spotted survivors. He sat on the roof of Rachel Dahlin's house all day watching the horizon, and counting the number of ghouls around the fences' perimeter. When there were too many, he was in charge of taking one of the rifles, baiting them as far away from Camp as possible, and killing them. A dirty job, but someone had to do it. Adric was the perfect person for it too. He was quiet, acquiescent, and overall not very social.

His shy disposition is partly what landed him the lookout job. In return for contributing to the community, he was treated like a member of the family; fed, clothed, and given his ration of clean uncontaminated water every day. Mrs. Dahlin relinquished her living-room couch so that Adric would have a place to sleep. She was a widow, and lived alone. She enjoyed his company.

Mr. and Mrs. Crumb's teenage daughters worked together with Dr. Burke's five year old daughter to help get chores done. Everyone pitched in, in one way or another, to keep the camp afloat. In the morning, the Boys would be off getting firewood so the boiling of tomorrow's water could start early (a long process that would take all day), while breakfast was prepared by the rest of the group. Then the clothes were washed while the Boys scavenged for food, soap and toiletries. Then after lunch each day, everyone enjoyed some free time, while Adric sat on the roof, staring into space. This was life now, and everyone was just beginning to accept it.

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Dr. Burke's study was his home. A place where he could keep himself updated on news about the parasite, and what was happening in the world through his little battery operated radio. The nearest radio station was over in Evestone, about twenty miles away, and the voice of the news reporter was faint. He could tell that the city was falling apart. Over the static, the reporter said that there were very few people left there. Everyone had fled to the airport, and many had become infected by doing so.

Dr. Burke sat and listened idly with his legs propped up on his desk. It was dark and dusty in his little retreat away from the kids. His hand went into his pocket on its own, and pulled out a cigarette. He put it to his lips and lit it, breathing in deeply as he did so. The grey curling cloud floated up toward the ceiling in slow motion.

_How long will we last? _This question had been on his mind a lot and with good reason. Did the rest of the group really think that they stood a chance against the parasite? Confirmed reports of the parasite traveling to Europe had surfaced, and now maybe Australia too? Who would save him and his daughter when the world was going to hell? _Nobody is coming to help us. Half the US is already infected and the parasite is still spreading. There is no way out of this. The most we can do is continue to survive, and pray._

A knock at the door startled him out of deep thought. _That must be the girls_, he mused. He stood, putting out his unfinished cigarette, walked to the door, and opened it.

Adric stood there in the doorway with a rifle slung over his shoulder.

"Ah, 'Rick! How are you doing," Burke said in his cheery voice.

"Doctor, you'd better come take a look at this."Adric's expression was full of genuine concern. His voice was louder and less monotone than normal.

"What is it?" Burke has never seen Adric look so worried before. "Is someone hurt?"

"No… it's just… it's the fence, sir. Please follow me."

Dr. Burke nodded followed Adric down the steps and out to the courtyard where everyone had gathered in the center. It was four in the afternoon, and the sun was a bright orange color. Everyone was standing up in the middle of the courtyard next to the fire pit, with their arms folded. Their eyes betrayed their concern as they looked back and forth at each of the four walls.

"Look." Adric motioned toward the fence around them. Through the cracks he could see that the entire length of the wall was lined with ghouls. At least a hundred of them were out there, moaning and grunting. They were louder than normal, Burke noted. The fence swayed back and forth slowly as the thin hoard of zombies flowed up against it.

"This is more than we've ever had before. What do you think doctor?" Mr. Crumb's voice was quiet.

"I don't know," he said. "When did you notice them?"

"They started gathering an hour ago, right after the Boys got back. Do you think that they will pass, or should we get the young ones inside?"

"Get them inside, just to be safe. I am not worried, but its best that we take this seriously. I'm sure they will pass in the next couple of hours."

"Boys and girls," Mr. Benson yelled. "It's time to head in! Rachel, would you mind being our host this evening? Everyone will be having dinner together tonight."

"Of course, I have plenty of room!" she said, nodding.

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Once everyone was inside, the doors were locked, and Rachel lit a few candles to brighten up the mood. Her house was neat and tidy for the most part. Old board games were handed out to the six children; Adric did not want to play. He had taken his bed sheets off the couch in the living room, and left them folded nicely on the ground and out of the way. After a few minutes, the candle gave the room a smoky lilac smell. Along the walls and through the hall were pictures of Rachel's family. Her husband passed away several years ago, she had told Adric, and her sons both moved to Florida. Now she lived here alone with him.

The three men were sitting on the roof, watching as more and more ghouls had come from all around. They stumbled up to the fence from the forest, and from down the street. Some even ran. This is what frightened Dr. Burke more than anything. The infected weren't supposed to run; they were supposed to be slow, and uncoordinated.

"What does it mean?" Eugene Crumb said. "Why are they running, doctor? I have never seen zombies act so bizarre."

"I don't like referring to them as zombies," Burke said quietly. "They're people, just like us, but their brains have been changed. Their humanity has been scrambled by the chemicals that the parasite has released in their brain. They are lost, but they are still people. They sleep; they shit; they _eat_! Hell, they're just like us!" He laughed aloud, but nobody else did.

"I'm no doctor, but I know one thing. Those… _things_, are not human," Benson said.

The three of them watched the four sides sway back and forth in silence for a few minutes. It creaked and groaned, making a sound similar to that of a squeaky door. The sound of the ghouls' moaning, coupled with the crying of the fence was ominous. It made Dr. Burke uneasy. Something was wrong here. They should not be acting like this, according to the information he had received from a fellow doctor regarding the parasite's effects on human beings.

"Well gentlemen, I've seen enough," said Crumb. He turned and crawled back through the window, and into the house.

"What will we do if things don't settle down around here? What if they don't leave? What if they break the fence?"

"Then we run," Burke said. "We take what we have, we pack up, and we run. All of us." His face showed that he was dead-serious, and Mr. Benson had no more questions.

After a few more minutes, the two men crawled back inside the house, to see what Mrs. Rachel Dahlin had planned for dinner.


	4. The Ending

A week earlier, three families are forced to hide in the home of Mrs. Dahlin, after their makeshift fortress come under attack by a large hoard of zombies that seemed to come from nowhere. Now we return to the present.

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**Chapter Three**

Evra's body tensed up as the zombie stumbled toward her. Its dried up black eyes seemed to be fixed upon her as it moved in. It let out a loud triumphant moan as it waddled forward. A long string of drool hung from its mouth agape. In one quick movement, Evra grabbed her backpack and jumped to her feet, and ran. All her thoughts seemed to leave her head as she came into panic's firm grasp. Fifty feet to her left, more ghouls began to limp out into the field after her from between houses and behind bushes. More fear surged through her. She ran faster, carrying her backpack at her side.

To her right, off to the side of the field, there were more crossing the street who had noticed her. _Where did they all come from?_, she thought as she ran. Her feet seemed to move like lightening over the smooth grass. As she neared the end of the park's field she hoisted her pack's straps back up over her shoulders in mid stride. The grass turned to cement under her feet and she changed direction, running down the road at full sprint. If she kept up this pace, she could reach the gas station in minutes, she thought.

She passed houses and old road signs along the way. She could hear the dry leaves crunching under her feet and the sound of her shoes hitting the hard road. She breathed steadily pacing herself. Her heart was still racing from the encounter with the ghouls in the park. Her heavy pack pounded her back with each stride.

Evra kept running until she could no longer see the park behind her. The road to the local 'Chevron' station began to come into view about another half mile away. Her feet were still moving faster than they ever had before. She let herself slow to a jog. Her chest throbbed a fast steady rhythm. If only she had this kind of strength in physical education class.

Out of breath, she dropped to her knees panting. Around her, there was silence. Her eyes scanned the houses that sat on either side of the road. Seeing no immediate threat, she stood up again and looked closer. There was a ghoul to her right about twenty yards away, who seemed to be more interested in a squirrel than in her. Behind her to the left forty feet away a ghoul had noticed her and fallen over. He was now crawling very slowly towards her. She began walking again. Gravel lined the edge of the road on either side.

The sun poured in over the trees and onto the street illuminating a path down toward her destination. As she walked, she could feel the world around her moving. There were infected everywhere in the city, but they were less noticeable than she had originally anticipated. All of a sudden she realized something. _They were following me_… she recalled. She distinctly remembered never looking behind her on the way to the park. _But they were so quiet!_The four ghouls behind her had not just suddenly appeared there. They must have been tagging along for a while unnoticed.

Evra glanced back at the single zombie crawling after her as she walked. He had pulled himself into the middle of the street trying to follow her, but he was much to slow. She walked onward relaxing a little, but her heart was still pulsing with fear. Evra continued onward carefully toward the gas station. The feeling of aloneness had started to pull at her. There was nobody to help her do this. The atmosphere was empty of all life, and filled to the brim with death.

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The sun was beginning to set as she arrived at the Chevron station. There was probably only an hour or so of sun left, she thought. She glanced at her dad's watch. 6:15 PM. She noted that the days were getting shorter. The sun was beginning to set earlier as if to celebrate winter's arrival in the next months.

When Evra was sure that she was not in danger of a nearby group of ghouls loitering behind a nearby house, she crossed the street to the Chevron parking lot. Its pumps looked the exact same as they had the last time she had seen them, when she was walking home with a group of friends. The sign that said 'OPEN' was dark and most of the windows had been bashed in. The fuel pump nozzles were out of their sockets and left carelessly on the ground. The main entrance to the building was a double "push to open" glass door, both sides of which had been broken leaving two large rectangular holes. It would be easy for someone to step right through as if there was no door at all. The lights were off inside.

She walked forward, unsure of whether to go in or stay where she was. Going in could be dangerous, as there could be an infected inside. As she got closer, she began to see all the food that was available within. Her mouth began to water, and she stepped cautiously through the door, careful to not step on any broken glass.

The inside was very poorly lit by the setting sun. She glanced back out the door, to see if there were any ghouls that had noticed her. There were none in sight. Satisfied, she grabbed a bag of chips from the stand nearest to the entrance and opened them.

The floor was a linear pattern of white and grey tiles that lead all the way up to each wall. By the entrance in the center of the floor was a big black rug, and the front counter and cash register were to her right also near the entrance. The back wall was the refrigerated section. Long rows of milk, bottled drinks, and canned beverages stretched the length of the entire store. Three rows of shelves full of dry food and candy divided the floor into a maze. It was a very simple maze for someone as hungry as she was.

She dropped her pack and quietly started to browse each isle eating and drinking as she went. Her pantry at home was empty from her two weeks of hiding from the infection, and she had not eaten in a whole twenty four hours.

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For a half hour, the gas station was heaven. Each new food tasted better than it ever had before. She stuffed herself with every snack, candy and soda that she could find until she was full. Then she began to fill the remaining room in her backpack until it bulged. By the time she was finished, her backpack seemed to weigh 20 times what it had weighed previously.

By this time the sun was halfway behind the horizon and it was getting hard to see. The only thought running through her mind was '_I cannot stay here'_. She was right. It was not safe to rest in a place where a ghoul could find her. Since the door was broken, it would be easy for one to stumble in on accident. She had thought about this as she had sat and ate, keeping an eye out for ghouls through the broken opening in the front door.

Her plan was to use the few minutes of dull daylight that was left to crawl up onto a mobile-home that she had passed on her way to the Chevron, using its ladder. From there, she planned to climb onto the roof of the house that it was parked next to. She would be safe from the limping infected, and would also have a good view of the next mile of her trek in the morning. It would not be a comfortable place to sleep, but it was high ground.

As Evra turned to grab her bag, she noticed that her shoe was untied. She bent to fix it. The darkness was already working against her.

_Suddenly_, she heard a sound coming from outside. Looking up, she watched as a tall dark figure flitted around the right side of the building, and leapt through a broken window. She screamed instinctively, and snatched her bag from where it was sitting on the floor. The tall figure had moved with such quick speed that it startled her.

As she was just about to sprint for the door, she saw four zombies outside clumsily walking toward the doorway. They walked as if it was their first time, wobbling and wriggling through the open rectangle doorframe where there had once been glass, and into the maze of food shelves.

Evra was unable to move, paralyzed by the sight, by the _sound_ of it all. The moaning, staggering people followed her as she backed up toward the checkout counter. Their faces seemed to almost grin with pleasure as they turned to follow her.

She looked around quickly for an escape route. _The window!_ She could make it if she was fast enough! Dashing through the aisle and around toward one of the broken front window, she moved as fast as she could, not bothering to tie her shoe. The lace whipped up and down in the air as she played 'ring around the rosie' with the infected. Then the evil lace tripped her, and she was on the ground.

She was cornered from behind and from the front. It was over. She was dead and she knew it. She backed up toward the counter silently. There was no way she could get out of this. _What a terrible way to die_, she thought, as if outside herself. And in her last moments, she realized something. She couldn't see any tunnel. There was no light. Her life was not flashing before her eyes. She was going to be eaten alive. This was death; the cold, alone, miserable ending. Evra felt something behind her grab on to her shoulders.


	5. Goodbye

Evra sway had found the gas station, and the first food she had seen in a long time. She ate until she was filled, and then relaxed and began to plan a place to sleep. While she was tying her shoe, a dark figure jumped through the window behind the checkout counter, and zombies began to pour in through the door. She was surrounded, and doomed.

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**Chapter Four**

"I can hear the fence breaking!" Adric's voice echoed down the stairs from where he was perched on the roof next to the open window. "Get ready! Hurry!" The lower level of the house was a frenzy of frantic movements. Everyone grabbed all that they could carry in their arms and prepared to leave camp. The internal barricades to the front door of Rachel's house were pried off so that everyone could escape at a moments notice. Everyone could feel the excitement, the energy, the fear running through them in long lethargic pulses.

"We move once they breach the courtyard," Mr. Benson said. "That way, the majority of the zombies will be out of the way. Hopefully we will have room to get out safely. Women and children get behind me." The procession of frightened people formed a long row stretching from the door all the way through the living room. Their apprehensive expressions floated on their faces. Nobody knew if this plan would work. In theory, the ghouls toward the front of the house would clear out when the back yard fence was broken down. The plan was to get everyone out the door and away from camp. That could only happen, however, if there were no ghouls in the front yard, and across the street toward the forest.

"Adric! What's it looking like up there?" Burke called. "Should we move yet?"

"They have almost broken through! Maybe another three or four minutes and they should start to disperse out front!"

The ghouls had swarmed around the entire perimeter and were now five to six bodies thick. There had to be at least a thousand. They screamed and thrashed like angry animals pushing and shoving at the creaky wooden wall. _I have never seen them act so aggressive,_ Adric thought. Normally they just stand staring at the fence for a few hours until he would lure them off to be dispatched. Now they were moving with a goal driven fury. They were loud, and rough, and fully animated.

"Mittens! Where is Mittens! Mommy, I can't find her anywhere!" Dr. Burke's five year old daughter cried. Mrs. Burke looked down at her child, confused. What was she talking about? _Mittens? Who is Mittens? And imaginary friend that she invented perhaps?_ "Mittens! Mittens! Where are you? Come here kitty," the child exclaimed. An orange and gray calico cat trotted up beside her, and began to rub up against her leg.

Adric came down the stairs behind the cat.

"A cat? What do you mean? There's a cat here?" Adric pointed to the small animal in the girl's arms. Around its neck was a blue collar that bore the name _Mittens_ on its circular steel name tag.

All of a sudden, Doctor Burke knew where all the ghouls had come from. He cursed quietly to himself. _No wonder the ghouls were acting so strange! They smelled the cat. Of course! It makes perfect sense!_ He had known that the infected were attracted to cats, and that they acted strangely when they sensed on in the area. _Why didn't I realize this earlier?_ He leaned against the wall and rubbed his eyes. Nobody spoke. Everyone stood in silence, waiting.

"Honey, when did you find Mittens?"

"Today, right after we had breakfast!" She smiled up at her father, and held up the cat. "Isn't she beautiful, daddy?" He could not speak. Frustration flowed through him and around his shoulders, making them feel heavy. The cat must have been wandering into their courtyard while exploring the neighborhood, he decided. His daughter had found it sitting in the shade of the eastern fence and decided not to tell anyone about her new pet.

One of Mr. Crumb's daughters looked at him. "Is the cat the reason all of these zombies are here?" Without having to be told, Adric knew what had happened.

He looked up at her and nodded. His face was grim. "Yes. We can't leave. Everyone drop your things. We are staying here." Everyone relaxed slightly knowing that they wouldn't have to go outside, but the threat was still all around the house, and would soon be at the back door as well as the front.

"What? Why? We can't stay here! The ghouls will be in the back yard any minute!" Mr. Benson was yelling. His voice was typically loud, but not this loud.

"The stray… the _smell_ of the cat is all over us. Everyone in the room has been exposed to it. The ghouls out there will chase us down. They are faster than us. Son of a bitch!" He slammed his fist against the wall, startling his daughter who began to cry. Her mother picked her up, and rubbed the back of her head affectionately. She hummed a soothing tune to calm her.

"They are attracted to the smell of cats?"

"Yes. The parasite is a chemically evolved version of something called 'toxoplasmosa gondii.' It was made in a lab as a biological weapon to be spread through water throughout the United States, and now other countries as well. The only place the parasite can finish its life cycle is in the intestines of a cat. If you leave this house, I guarantee you will die."

The room was quiet for a few moments as everyone came to realize their fate. They would die here in this very house, all because of a stupid cat. Whispers filled the room with a gentle humming sound as everyone speculated as to what would happen next. The room already seemed smaller around them. This home, this trap, it might as well be one large dinner plate, surrounded by zombies.

Adric's mind raced, his thoughts entertaining several different plans of escape at a time. He sat on the living room floor with his back against the wall, thinking hard. Everyone watched Dr. Burke, who was gripping his hair in his clenched fists by the front door. _Perhaps we can kill the infected somehow_, Adric thought. Not likely. Even if there were enough rounds to kill every single one of them, the sound of the shots fired would just attract more. There had to be a way out, something that nobody else had thought of yet.

Adric rubbed his face and then suddenly an idea came to him. His eyes widened and he stared straight ahead for a moment. Then he looked down at mittens, the cat that had gotten them in this predicament in the first place."Come here mittens," Adric said, bending down and motioning for the cat to come. "We are going outside."

"Bye mittens," the Burke's daughter said and waved to the small cat. She wasn't completely sure what was going on.

"Adric, where are you taking the cat," Dr. Burke asked somewhat concernedly as Adric began to climb the steps to the upper floor. "Wait just a minute. Adric!" It was too late.

He took the stairs two at a time, sprinting toward the upstairs level. The cat's eyes were wide with fright and it clung to his shirt where he held it in his arms. He rounded the corner to the bedroom with the open window. He had been through here many times for his job as 'Camp Lookout'. The sound of an army of infected rang through the window. It was humbling to hear the ghouls moan and scream and chant. They could already smell Mittens' fur.

Adric moved carefully out onto the cool roof and paused for a moment taking in the scene. More zombies had joined in shaking the fence which now swung wildly back and forth like a whip. On the other side of camp opposite of him, a small whole had been broken and a limp hand stuck through it. He looked at the runway that he had plotted out in his mind on the way up the stairs. The roof ran in a long line that was perpendicular to the fence. It made a sort of slanted walkway toward the edge corner of the house.

Adric took a deep breath and tucked the cat into his shirt, all the while collecting his thoughts.

_Run like hell, Adric.. run like hell!_

He ran his hardest toward the edge of the house. The world whipped by as he neared the edge where the zombies were waiting for him down below. He leaped into the air using all the strength he had in his legs. Wind tousled his hair and whistled in his ears. The momentum he had built up carried him cleanly over the thick wall of zombies. As he hit the ground, he pulled up his legs and rolled transferring the weight of his fall along the length of his back. He had done this many times as a young child, but never off of a roof.

As the world came back around again, the blood flowed to his brain in a rush and he recovered his sprint fluidly. The feeling of safety that the walls provided was now gone. He was outside the gate, and back into the infected world. He ran across the street not bothering to look back at the trail of infected behind him. He could hear them scrambling, and running, and flailing, and falling over each other as they struggled to pursue him and the cat he had tucked under his shirt. She had dug her claws deep into his belly, but he scarcely noticed. He supported her with his hand as he ran his fastest down the street, under the setting sun.

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Minute after minute time ticked by, but it felt more like a century to him. Adric had been running for more than a mile and a half. The long line of hundreds of zombies trailing him had been reduced to just a few of the fastest of the group, who were still close behind. He couldn't look back to see them, but he could hear them panting and gurgling in their clumsy pursuit. He passed houses, and stores, and many trees as he ran.

The road weaved around the curves of a steep mountain and widened as he reached the town of Elmwood. He had been here before, and immediately recognized the layout. There would be a place to stop soon. He could rest if he could just get rid of the ghouls behind him. They were relentless. It would not be such a problem if they could get tired, but the smell of the cat drove them onward. It gave them the high that they needed, and their muscles felt no pain.

Adric stumbled and almost dropped the cat, but recovered quickly. An elementary school was not far away. He could see the roof protruding from over a small group of saplings. The sun was beginning to set, and everything that light touched held a warming orange hue. His legs felt like they were on fire and his lungs felt as though they had completely dried up. He could hear the group of ghouls hadn't gave up the chase. They ran in awkward but effective bursts, and they caught up with him every time that he thought he had outrun them.

He passed the property line of the school that was marked by a long line of pine trees. The school's grass was still trimmed, and in shape, and chalk marks on the sidewalks were still there from the children who used to play there.

Adric was weak and fading quickly. His body could not keep up with the stress that he had put on it. He needed to stop soon or he would pass out. The grass of the schoolyard dampened the sound of his tired legs as he made for the main entrance of Elmwood Elementary.

Perhaps he could slow to a jog and still be ahead of the ghouls behind him? Nope.

As he angled his head to see what was behind him, a ghoul grabbed his shoulder and knocked him over from behind. In the blink of an eye, two more ghouls were on top of him thrashing and screeching. Their faces were expressionless, like the faces of the dead. He had seen people eaten alive before when the infection had first surfaced, but he never could have imagined what it would feel like to be eaten himself. Now maybe he would get to experience it firsthand, here in the soccer field of an elementary school.

The ghoul's knees were on his chest and legs and in his face. The tore at his shirt trying to get to the cat underneath. Adric flailed and shifted. He tried to shove the four figures off of him, as he struggled to free himself. The alarmed Mittens, who was still recovering from being carried so roughly, now howled in anger.

Adric did not scream or cry out, but grunted and whined softly in the grip of death. He struggled against the four dirty figures until he finally gave in. His eyes rolled back as he passed out from exhaustion.

Suddenly the cat shot out from under his shirt and flitted off into a nearby bush, followed by two drooling ghouls. The other two stayed on top of Adric, sniffing and licking his stomach where the cat had just been. Their yelling and hollering slowed to a groaning sound as the two ghouls began rubbing Adric's lifeless body as if caressing a lover. After a few minutes the bigger of the two leaned over and barfed a sickening black bile on his chest. Then the other followed suit. They continued rubbing and licking him slowly. For ten minutes this continued. The parasite was entering the final stage of its life cycle, and the zombies had no intention of eating Adric.

The two of them eventually lost interest and wandered off to chase after the cat, who had apparently left.

Adric lay at the elementary school unconscious, covered in the parasite. It was in his mouth, his eyes, his nose, and all over his chest.

There is no turning back once the parasite is inside you. There is no preventing the inevitable, or is there?

_Peace for you, Adric Vaughn. Rest in peace.. _

_..for now._


	6. The Boy and his Bandages

Dr. Burke, one of the fathers at the camp, realized that the reson there were so many ghouls outside was because his daughter had found a stray cat and brought it inside. Realizing that the situation was nearly hopeless, Adric grabbed the cat and leaped off the roof overtop the zombies. He ran until he was chased down, and he passed out on the ground, with his face and chest covered in zombie saliva and puke.

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**Chapter Five**

It all happened in a blur. Zombies had come through the door and trapped Evra in the back of the chevron gas station. She backed up toward the counter slowly like a cornered mouse in the eyes of a snake, about to strike. Four ghouls had already stumbled through the doorway and were all shambling toward her. There was nowhere to run. Evra breathed out, ready to die as the figure behind her grabbed her shoulders with both hands.

Then she was falling backward toward the ground, as the boy behind her yanked sharply backwards, careful not to let her hit the floor too hard. His face was wrapped in gauze bandages all the way up to where only a small patch of his hair could be seen sticking out of the top of his head. He wore silver-tinted snowboarder goggles over his eyes. His arms and shins were wrapped in bandages like his face. He wore a grey-blue hooded sweatshirt and dark grey pants that stopped just beyond the knees and elbows, where the bandages began.

He stepped over her, and un-slung his rifle in one lithe movement. It came up to his cheek naturally the way it had many times before. He slid the strap over his arm, and brought the stock of the gun to his shoulder. In the blink of an eye he was lined up with the first ghoul in the row, stiffening himself for the first shot.

He pulled the trigger. There was a loud explosion as the round discharged, sending a hot chunk of lead alloy right into the zombie's head. The force of the bullet threw the ghoul backwards, and rearranged his brains all over the next ghoul in line. Undeterred, the three remaining ghouls pressed onward. They did not seem to notice that their comrade had just been executed.

One by one, each ghoul went down the same as the last until there were four bodies on the floor, each with a broken skull. Blood and brain matter covered the walls, ceiling, and floor. Only a small drop of blood had landed the boy's goggles. He looked around the poorly lit gas station with his rifle still at the ready. _Sneaky sneaky zombies_…

Satisfied that the current threat had been dispatched, he pulled a bloody rag from his pocket, and wiped his goggles clean. Around him all of the sounds of night had started to return. Crickets began to chirp once again. The sound of the breeze blowing the leaves outside was back. Evra lay there unconscious, sprawled out on the floor. _Now what to do with the girl… _He looked at her and thought for a moment. He wondered if there would be room for her back at Camp. They were always looking for new people to help out, but it would be his first time back in a whole week. Plus he was… _different,_ now. In addition to that, could she be trusted? No. It was not worth the risk. He would leave her there, he decided.

The boy pulled a flashlight from his pocket to examine the back area of the Chevron more closely. He had made this trip for two reasons: one, to seek all of the supplies on his shopping list; two, to find a good place to sleep for the night. Friends back at Camp would not worry about him: he had been gone for quite a while. He had spent the night alone every night for the past week with no problems.

The infected did not bother him much. It was the survivors that worried him most. People were different than they used to be. Bands of marauders could cover over twenty miles in a single day. What could appear to be a helpless old man could follow you and leech off of you for a few days and then kill you while you slept. The infection had this kind of effect on people. It turned them into animals; monsters; crazies. Though she was small and so far docile, this young lady could be a serious threat to his life.

The back room was square, and full of boxes. The boy's flashlight illuminated the entire room. A dusty cobweb hung in the corner. He could tell this room did not get much attention. His light stopped on a narrow set of steep wooden stairs, and he followed it up to a hatch on the ceiling. _Must lead to the roof, _he thought. _A safe place to sleep_, he checked it off the list.

Now for the shopping list, he returned to the store. He browsed each isle careful to step around the pool of blood and the pile of bodies. He was looking for tape. Not just any tape though; he needed duct tape, the god of adhesives. The boy looked through a shelf of assorted tapes, and took two rolls of 'Uline' brand duct tape. Then he grabbed a lock from a little area of the store full of camping equipment. He would use it to keep the hatch to the roof shut; he did not want any ghouls to visit him up there. Then he found more gauze and some rubbing alcohol for his face and arms and began to walk back to the stairs. On the way, he grabbed a bottle of water and slid it into his pocket.

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It was too dark to see. Without the boy's light, the main area of the gas station was completely pitch-black. He lay on the roof with his gun at his side and waited for sleep to come. The cool night time air smelled wonderful. He loved to be outside. He did not need a warm bed, or a tent. All he needed was the moon and the stars above him. But tonight, sleep did not come.

He thought about the girl lying on the floor unconscious. He could picture a ghoul lumbering in and biting deep into her neck. The boy cringed.

_All right_… he Groaned and pulled himself up. _Let her die on her own terms_. He walked over to the hatch and unlocked it, and descended the stairs.

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Evra awoke to the sound of birds chirping. The wind was blowing gently over her where she lay curled up, on the roof of the Chevron. Her back was warm from the sun that was already high in the sky.

She stirred, and slowly lifted her head as her eyes began to adjust to the sunlight. Then she jerked awake, remembering where she was. The last thing she could recall was that she was cornered by zombies in the back of a dark gas station and about to be eaten. But there were no zombies here, and it was morning. _Where am I?_

Evra looked around, taking in her surroundings. She was laying on a cold hard surface using her backpack full of food and clothes as a pillow. In front of her were potato chips and three pieces of celery sitting neatly on a napkin. Several feet away was a thin young man, with bandages over his face and arms. He sat with his legs crossed and his arms resting on his knees, silently staring at her. His rifle was in his lap.

"Hello," she said, almost as if asking a question. He regarded her with a nod, and removed a bottle of water from his pocket. His movements were robotic. He slid it over to her across the flat, leaf covered roof.

"Thank you," she said as she picked it up.

She examined the boy's dirty semblance as she sipped the water. He wore a ripped black shirt, and his dirty grey hooded-sweater was nearby on the ground, next to his goggles. His bandages were browned with dust.

He continued to stare at her reverently as she began to nibble on a piece of celery. _Who is this guy? _She remembered the zombies, and the hands on shoulder. She remembered falling backwards then… blackness. Now she was here, sitting across the roof from this tall thin young man in an awkward silence. Unsure of what to do, she quickly finished her "breakfast."

After a few moments, the boy grabbed his sweater and his goggles and stood up. She did the same, not knowing what else to do. Without a word, he walked away from her toward the edge of the roof, and leapt nimbly to the ground.

"Where are you going?" she called, walking over to where he had disappeared. This was the first person she had talked to in two weeks, and he was already leaving her. "Wait!" She wanted to follow him, but had not realized how high up she really was. She peered over the edge at the ground below. They were only one story up, but it was still quite a drop. The boy had already crossed the street and was walking quickly down the sidewalk, with his rifle in his hand.

She turned and saw a lock and a hatch, with a key sitting on it. It was the way he had gotten her up, and a way she could get herself down, she decided. She hurried over and opened it. Inside, she could see the sunlight that poured into the store through the main area, but what was down there? She went cold as the fear of being trapped washed over her again. _Zombies, _she thought, and slammed the hatch shut.

Evra returned to the side of the building and tossed her backpack over. It landed with a muffled thud in the grass below. Then, she grasped corner and lowered herself down, her feet dangling over the edge. It was a short seven foot drop below her, since her body took up part of the distance. She landed on the ground clumsily, and recovered her balance. Then, she grabbed her bag and ran to catch up with the bandaged boy carrying the rifle, half expecting to be attacked by ghouls on either side.


	7. How to Die

Adric's eyes fluttered open, and his world was dark. The chill of night had fallen upon him and his body was shaking. The sun was no longer illuminating the field of the elementary school, and above him, he could see little white dots in the sky that were stars. The day flashed through his head in a dizzying blur. The events of the past few hours flooded into his brain and he jerked awake. Sudden realization baptized his face with fear and twisted it into frightened knots. He covered his head with his hands and rolled over. Bloody black slime was stuck to his fingers and was now cold in the soft breeze that blew through the field. His body was covered in zombie vomit and snot, and he forced himself to keep from screaming. _I am alive... I am alive? How am I alive? Doesn't matter, I am alive. _

He sat up wiping the black goo on his chest as he did so. The cold air had made his legs and arms stiff, and it hurt to move them. His joints were locked in place from the cold. Around him, all of the sounds of night brought the area to life. Crickets chirped everywhere. Their song sounded over the hushed breeze, like one continuous note that would rise and fall, as if it were breathing. The area was alive around him, but no ghouls were there. Apparently, they had left to try to find the cat.

Adric felt weak, and dizzy. The parasite had already been in his body for over two hours, and deep down inside he knew that he was doomed to become a ghoul, like all the others. Still, he tried to stand. Shifting his weight to one knee, and keeping his hands on the ground for balance, he pulled himself part way up. A sudden twisting pain in his belly sent him back to the earth, and out of nowhere nausea hit him like a punch in the gut. He puked up Mrs. Dahlin's cooking on the grass for a few moments until nothing was left in his stomach. Then he was dry heaving, unable to control himself. He wanted to vomit, but nothing would come. Then the dizziness returned but more intense this time. Even lying on the ground, he had lost his sense of direction.

Adric fought to get to his hands and knees. His breathing was heavy and the sickness of the parasite seemed to work against him. His goal was nearby and he wanted to reach it. He crawled toward the dark school building that was barely illuminated by the moon overhead. The pavement of the parking lot was still slightly warmer than the air. His hands hugged the warm cement as he pulled himself along. Small pebbles and dirt stuck to his palms, but he did not notice. His eyes were squinted, trained on the front entrance.

Little by little, he made his way closer and closer to the school, until he was just a few feet from the doors. The sound of footsteps came from behind him. A ghoul had decided to come investigate. Adric froze in his crouched position, unsure of what to do. Should he allow himself to be eaten alive by this ghoul, or crawl inside the school and slowly become one, himself? He stayed still and waited for the lumbering zombie to make its way over to him. It approached clumsily and sniffed the air. _He knows I am here_, Adric thought. The curious zombie stopped promptly, a foot away from Adric, and reached down to touch him. Adric shrank away from it to avoid its crusty hand, and crawled for the door of the school slowly. When he turned back to look, the ghoul had seemingly lost interest, and was already walking off into the light of the moon.

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The inside of the school was pitch-black. Adric navigated through the hallways bumping into walls, and dragging himself past classroom doors that were all locked. Eventually, he could crawl no further. Collapsing on his side, he relaxed a little and curled up in the fetal position. His cheek rested against the floor, in the middle of the empty hall. He shivered, and twisted, and shook. Then more vomit came, followed by more dry-heaving.

His pained moans could be heard echoing down the hallway, and he felt claustrophobic being surrounded by surfaces on all sides. It was as if he was wrapped up in the pain, and unable to move.

A spasm shot up his back and he curled, stifling a scream. He could hear the sound of his own cries so closely, and he felt pathetic. Tears began to flow down his cheeks more easily than before, and they warmed his face. His eyes burned.

The stomach acid and filth began to sink in deeper, and he whimpered passively, unable to prevent the parasite from traveling deeper and deeper into him. All of his fear had been replaced with helplessness, and loneliness.

_I'm going to die here_, he thought_. _It was the sad truth. He was ready. He had come a long way, and saved his friends that he had met back at camp. It was time to die._ Might as well do it on my own terms_. He produced a folded knife that he had found in Mr. Benson's garage. Though he could not see it in the darkness, he could feel the smooth heavy shape of the handle in his hand. It was warm to the touch from being in his pocket all night.

Adric flipped the blade out to admire it with his fingers. He closed his eyes and ran his hand up the length of its edge, careful not to cut himself just yet. It was a smooth, sharp, magnificent thing. He fondled the blade in silence for a few moments, lamenting his own death. _This knife ..This lovely blade. _It was his way out ..His escape.

He let the edge of it slide over his arm, gently gliding over his skin. Then he applied more pressure and it sunk deep into his forearm. His warm blood flowed freely from the wound, and dripped onto the floor.

_Bliss_.. He had done it before. There was no pain. The cut released him from the world, and he began at the top of his arm again to start another stroke. He carved his veins once more, but a little aggressively this time, and giggled softly. _It is over now. No more worries_. The crimson gushed from him quicker.

Adric made the euphoric feeling last as he sliced himself up, laughing to himself quietly, in the darkness of the school building. A swirling sensation tossed him about through his deep, troubled mind. He flew through his life re-living each memory in the blink of an eye. He cried and growled and snorted and hollered, remembering the best of his experiences, and the worst.

Then his strength began to fade and the spinning colors started to dim. His mind settled into cold blackness and he laid there motionless. The night went on without him and early in the morning Adric's body stirred. It stood up and swayed from side to side in a daze, then began to march in no particular direction through the halls of the school like only a ghoul could.

He was gone again, and would not wake up for much longer this time.

..three days, to be precise.


End file.
